Ryan & Jules
by Mara Williams
Summary: A modern retelling of Romeo and Juliet I did for an English assignment. This is a lot like the movie, but I wrote this after only seeing half of the movie so give me a break!


Kathryn Wetzel  
  
December 4, 2001 A3 "Ryan and Jules"  
  
  
  
"Pa's Grocery Store", the sign read. The P in "Pa's" blinked red, on and off, on and off. It was only six-thirty in the evening, but the sign was on. Trash littered the sidewalk in front of the store, where an old man stood with stooped shoulders, wincing as his knees popped while he pushed a broom held in his veiny, gnarled hands.  
  
Pa had owned the store for fifty years. His memories flashed back to a time when girls in poodle skirts walked down the sunny sidewalks, chattering about Bobby Dean and how he was "soooo keen". Now the sidewalks were sunny no more, root beer floats long forgotten, and Bobby Dean just not as handsome as he once was.  
  
Now the neighborhood was gang-ridden. Most of its inhabitants were on welfare, and they had nothing else to do but prowl the streets, picking fights with rival gangs.  
  
The old man began to hum an aged show tune as the warm feeling of happiness spread through him. The day was almost over. He looked up from his work as he heard the familiar hum of an expensive car's engine. He liked expensive cars. A raven-colored Porsche turned the corner and pulled up to the alley beside his store. The old man grimly muttered to himself that Richies should stick to their country clubs. He then scurried back into his store, his shotgun within hands reach.  
  
Two men emerged from the Porsche, laughing, jesting.  
  
"I.can shoot better than you," the driver said, moving to sit on the curb. He was a slight man of thirty, with sandy-brown hair and blue eyes. Eyes that were now watery, filled to the brims with tears of laughter.  
  
"Ha, but I can draw quicker, and I know martial arts, Grant," the passenger, Samuel said. Samuel was even shorter than Grant, with a chubbier set body, minus the grace of a martial artist.  
  
The two goons of the Vespucci family really had no business in the alley. Still, they liked to hang around the alley, tormenting Pa with their roughhousing and clashes with the Williamses.  
  
The Vespucci family was the head of the Italian mob of the city. They knew everything that went on in any part of the city, at any given time. They made it their business to know everything. The Williams family was much the same way. They were the richest family in all America. Any threat made to them or anyone under their protection was terminated with no regard to the aftermath of the situation. They took care of what was theirs.  
  
The Vespucci goons continued their play, as much as their immature minds would allow. They were too involved with their fake brawling to notice the approaching Cadillac.  
  
The Caddy pulled up to the alley. Two men came from its doors. One was tall and Viking like, with blonde hair, blue eyes, and angular features. The other was a striking contrast, short, stout, with olive skin and black hair. They were goons as well, but from the Williams' house.  
  
The tall one spoke and interrupted the Vespucci men's fantasies. "Well, well, well, what have we here?" he said, fingering the pistol in his belt. "Balty, it looks like we have a couple of Vespucci idiots on our hands!"  
  
"Yeah, Adam, I think so too. Just what should we do about it?" Balty removed his pistol and pointed it at Samuel.  
  
At the sight of this, Grant punched Adam as a distraction for Samuel. The gun Adam had removed from his belt was knocked askew. Samuel and Balty engaged in hand-to-hand combat, knocking over garbage cans, slamming against the walls of the alley. The fight continued between the four men.  
  
More black automobiles turned on to the road, as members from the mob and the Williams' clan arrived to aid the quarreling men.  
  
A blood red BMW Z-3 turned the corner and approached the alley. A tall man emerged, with ebony hair and eyes that matched.  
  
"Hey, guys, chill out!" he yelled. "You idiots!" Benjamin Williams darted towards the middle of the fray, trying to break up the men.  
  
Another man emerged from the Laundromat across the road. He darted through traffic and ran towards Benjamin.  
  
"You join these morons? I would have thought more of you, Williams," Theo Vespucci said. He looked much like Benjamin, but even taller and more sophisticated. He drew his gun and pointed it towards Benjamin. "I guess I'll just kill you now." The sound of approaching sirens made his hand waver. Police cars pulled up to the alley, and cops with guns drawn came forward to break the fight. Three limousines arrived as well. The patriarchs of both families came from two of the limos, and the mayor from the third.  
  
"I've had enough of this," Mayor Edwards said. "Pay attention, all of you!" he said. "One more, one fight between you two families will result in execution! Stay away from each other. You-Vespucci-come with me. Williams-I want you in my office this afternoon. As for the rest of you, out of my sight."  
  
All dispersed from the scene, and Pa breathed a sigh of relief.  
  
  
  
A majestic house could be seen from the window of the limousine. It was the Williams Estate. Set on the outskirts of the city, it was one of Home & Gardens' Top Twenty Estates. It was a large mansion that sat upon grounds well groomed. The limo pulled up to the wrought-iron gates and proceeded through to the garage that held all the vehicles belonging to the family.  
  
"Benjamin, have you caught sight of my son at all today?" Frederick Williams asked. He was a formidable man, strong despite his age, with salt- and-pepper hair. He had made his money in the stock market. He used deception, sometimes even fatality, to achieve his means. He didn't measure the cost of any of his actions.  
  
"Thank goodness he wasn't involved in this," Esther Williams said as she breathed a sigh of relief. She took her husband's arm as they walked up to the front steps of the house.  
  
"Yessir, I saw him at the beach this morning. He continues to block the world out. I think he was aware of me this morn, but not. It was as if he was in another time, another place." Benjamin replied.  
  
"Others have seen him there, every morning, tears in his eyes." Williams relented. "Don't know why." A sigh escaped his throat as the three entered the house and he sank into his prized leather chair.  
  
The front door creaked open. Ryan Williams, only son of Frederick and Esther, shuffled through the foyer and started towards the grand staircase. He began to climb the stairs, slowly, methodically.  
  
Benjamin followed him up to his room. "God, cousin, will you tell me what the hell is wrong with you? You seem oblivious to all that's around you."  
  
"I've lost so much." Ryan said. He flopped down on his bed and turned on his side.  
  
"What, may I ask? What makes you so, I don't know, out of it?"  
  
"Love," Ryan replied. His sandy hair covered his deep blue eyes that seemed lost in the depths of forever. "Rosa, that girl I've been seeing? She's becoming a nun. A nun! I must not be valiant enough for her."  
  
"She's not worth it if she doesn't want you!" Benjamin said. He was becoming exasperated. Ryan fell in love at the drop of the hat. Each time he was dumped, he withdrew into his own little world until he found another dark-haired beauty to keep him occupied.  
  
"She was the love of my life!" Ryan persisted. "I've lost her."  
  
"Look, you'll find someone else. Surely she wasn't the love of your life. It wasn't meant to be. Fate took her away. Find someone else."  
  
Ryan stared glumly at the wall.  
  
  
  
Peter Carter drove up to the grand Vespucci Manor, praying for the best towards his marriage proposal to Jules Vespucci, the mob head's daughter. It would mean great things for him. Final acceptance into the mob, and money, money, money. Of course he had plenty of money as it was, but Peter thought that no one could ever have enough.  
  
Today is the day, he thought. The gates swung open.  
  
Bruno Vespucci met him at the door. "Peter, Peter, to what do I owe the honor?"  
  
"A simple acceptance, sir. I have come to make you an offer." Peter shook the man's hand and almost crumpled in his nervousness. Any doubts to his decision fled his mind as Vespucci said, "Great! Come with me to my office."  
  
"Sir, I understand that your daughter is of marriable age. I approach you to ask for her hand."  
  
"Well, let me warn you, my family is very important to me. Still, your offer is debatable. Let me think over this for a minute." The man swung back and forth in his chair, deep in thought.  
  
"You vow to uphold all Vespucci responsibilities?" he asked.  
  
"Yes, sir. I am very responsible. Anything you need, I'm there. Just--,"  
  
Vespucci held up a hand. "Calm down, son. I accept your offer." He gave a jovial laugh. "We shall have a party! A costume party it will be. A Halloween party, at that! Butler!"  
  
"Yes, sir," a man with an English accent stepped inside the room.  
  
"Send out invitations for a Halloween party! We will celebrate! Eat, drink and be merry!" Vespucci said, grinning.  
  
"For tomorrow we die," Peter muttered.  
  
"Come, Peter, let us walk and talk. Have you ever seen my gardens?" Vespucci slapped him on the back and led him through the door.  
  
  
  
"Yo Ryan!" Benjamin ran up to greet him. The crowds on the street hindered quick moment. "I found the perfect opportunity for you to get some!"  
  
"I'm not interested in that at the moment, Ben." Ryan's curiosity overpowered him, though, so he relented. "What is it, Benjamin?"  
  
"The Vespucci. They hold a costume party!"  
  
"You trying to get us in trouble again, Ben? I have no wish to get arrested." Ryan was becoming slightly irritated with Benjamin's tireless energy.  
  
"Well, it will get your mind off Rosa. Come; let's go to it! We haven't crashed a Vespucci party in ages!" Benjamin would do anything to get Ryan out of the dumps. "I've got some great costumes!"  
  
"Fine, just shut up already!" Ryan said, relenting. "Let's go look at these costumes of yours."  
  
  
  
"Jules! Jules! Where is that girl?" Laurel Vespucci was becoming irritable with her daydreaming daughter. "Probably got her head in a damn book again! Maria, there you are. Where's Jules? Bring her to me." Laurel's sleek black hair shook with her anger. She was a bitter woman, and her face, although altered by her plastic surgeon every now and then, was showing signs of her strain. Her olive skin was wrinkled, despite the constant maintenance she put into it.  
  
Laurel gazed into the mirror, examining her face. She wished she were back in Italy. Verona never gave her this much trouble. I made a mistake marrying a mob man, she thought.  
  
"Mother, you rang?" Jules and her nurse Maria entered Laurel's chamber. Laurel quickly wiped the tears from her eyes and faced her daughter, attempting a smile. "Maria, leave us. We have to talk in private." On second thought, Laurel thought, I cannot relate to Jules at all. "Wait, Maria, come back."  
  
Maria came back through the solid oak door. "Oh, I remember when you were a wee babe," she gleamed in Jules' direction. "Didn't know it, but ye talked of layin' on yer back, with a man an' all."  
  
"Maria, hush. Jules," she said, turning, "how would you like to be married?" A true smile brushed over her lips. Rid of the brat at last!  
  
"I only dream of it, Mum. It would be an honor, I suppose." Jules hated her mother's conniving actions. She acts as if she would love to get rid of me, Jules thought to herself. I wish I had a real companion. I never get to go out. Papa's business is so dangerous I can't even set foot on the street without one of his goons beside me. Maria is my only friend. All she does is talk about sex, though. Geez, I barely know what it is.  
  
Her mother's nasal voice interrupted Jules' daydreaming. "Well, you'll never guess who came to call on your father today."  
  
"Who? Another person whom he conducts his 'business' with? I really don't care, Mum." Jules wished then to run away, far away. I have grown too tired of this family, this business, this life, she thought. If only I were a bird. I could go away and find someone like me whom I could spend all of eternity with.  
  
"Well, it was Peter Carter. He asks for your hand!" Laurel could barely contain her excitement over the prospect of Peter Carter taking Jules off her hands.  
  
"God, Mum, people only asked for parental permission in the fifties! Oh well, I'll look at him; maybe he'll catch my eye. He's probably insipidly boring."  
  
"Well, Jules, get ready for the Halloween party! I have it on good authority that Peter will make an appearance tonight!" Laurel flounced out of the room.  
  
Oh joy, Jules thought.  
  
  
  
"Should we let them know we're coming?" Ryan stifled a yawn as he turned onto Sycamore Street. He was dressed in his costume, as an Arab palace guard.  
  
"Don't be so bored, compadre!" Benjamin said. "We'll dance and then leave. We won't alert them to our presence." Benjamin was dressed as Father Time, in a priest's outfit, with numerous watches adorning his arms. He playfully began to pick a fight with Ryan.  
  
"Ben, settle down! I'm not in the mood!" He pulled the car up to Vespucci Manor, and his thoughts, again, turned to Rosa. He missed her desperately. A convent! he thought. A convent, over me!  
  
"Lovesick, friend? Come, we'll initiate The Macarena when we get there. Oops! I forgot, that was your 'song'," Ryan's best friend Michael then started to dance and sing the tune, only to be tackled by Benjamin. Michael, though not gay as many thought, was nevertheless dressed as a pansy.  
  
Ryan groaned and turned up the radio on the car. A Limp Bizkit song about living life in the fast lane came on. Ryan thought, That's definitely not me! Hell, all I can do is think about my love, who dumped me! "C'mon, guys, can we get out of here?"  
  
"Fine," Michael said. "Let's go crash a party!"  
  
Back at Vespucci Manor, all were going slightly crazy in last-minute preparation for the party. Cooks were dashing about, trying to get all the food dished up in time for dinner. The interior designer was ordering one small man standing on a teetering ladder to pull a banner up on the left side. "Scoot it over! No, you idiot!"  
  
The ballroom of the Vespucci Manor looked majestic. Huge sheer orange sashes draped from the ceiling, some falling slightly to brush the marble floor. All furniture in the room had black slipcovers over them. The wide staircase was adorned with cobwebs, as were the corners of the room.  
  
Most of the guests arrived at seven-thirty. All were in costume. Those that weren't were denied entrance.  
  
Bruno Vespucci stood at the top of the staircase, flanked at his sides by his wife and daughter Jules. As he slowly descended, he began to speak.  
  
"Welcome, ladies and gents!" He stretched out his hands in front of him, as if to embrace everyone in the room. "Welcome to the party of the century! My wife and I are happy to celebrate All Hallows Eve with you! Please, feel free to dance, sing, or simply tip back a few glasses!"  
  
Vespucci stepped of the stairs, and, arm and arm with his wife, began to sip a dry martini as he ambled through the large crowd, talking, laughing.  
  
Jules hung back. She was dressed as an angel. She couldn't help feeling a pit preoccupied. In truth, she loved parties. Especially dancing. She really felt herself whenever her feet touched the dance floor. Grimly she thought, I should show these people my booty dancing. My father would love that! When Mrs. Winston, the most gossipy woman in town, started to lead Jules from the staircase, Jules let herself fall into the party. Her mind was elsewhere, though. What she really wished for was a friend.  
  
  
  
Ryan entered the grand hall of the Vespucci House with his friends. Just my idea of fun, he thought. Crashing a party had been exciting for him in the past, but now, he just didn't want to do anything. Rosa had been his whole life. The world had seemed brighter and fuller when she was around. Now that he was deprived of her, Ryan didn't find joy in the simple things.  
  
He caught sight of Theo Vespucci standing in a corner. He looked darkly at everything around him. It seemed as though Theo was withdrawn from the crowd, not paying attention to anything. Ryan knew better, though. Ryan knew that Theo observed everything around him, thinking of ways to use whatever came his way to his own advantage.  
  
Ryan turned his back to Theo, not wanting to be recognized. Ryan was certainly not in the mood for a fight. Not this night, he thought.  
  
In his preoccupation, Ryan did not notice the light of recognition spread over Theo's face, nor did he notice Theo amble towards Bruno Vespucci.  
  
  
  
Theo Vespucci caught sight of his uncle, Bruno, and walked towards him.  
  
"There is someone here who does not belong, Uncle," he said.  
  
"Do not interrupt my party, boy. Let it be!" the elder Vespucci said, as he turned back to the mayor. The last thing he needed was for Mayor Edwards to witness a quarrel at his party. The last thing he needed was to have a death sentence over his head. The business was dangerous enough already. Still, Vespucci's curiosity over won his reasoning. "Pardon me for a moment, Mayor," he said as he turned and led Theo away.  
  
"Who was it?" he asked Theo. He was a slight bit drunk, but his head wasn't so stuffed that he couldn't reason.  
  
"Ryan Williams, Uncle. He and his friends Benjamin and Michael have come to crash our party, the white scum." Theo's eyes gleamed with murderous intent as he scanned the room for Ryan. When his look settled upon Ryan, he ran his tongue over his lips, fingering the hilt of his gun.  
  
"Now listen, Theo. This is a party, not a bloodbath. I don't need any trouble here tonight. Besides, rumor has it that Ryan is a decent fellow.  
  
  
  
"I know of the feud between our families, but you know what the mayor said. Death. It would hang over your head if you start a fight with the whites again. Give it up! I mean it, Theo." Vespucci turned and walked back towards the mayor.  
  
Theo, his temper provoked, left the room, wishing to go against his uncle's wishes, but at the same time, not really wishing that at all.  
  
  
  
Ryan was becoming more and more bored with the party. He was trying to follow Benjamin's advice. He was looking at other women, but none seemed to posses that glow that Rosa had harbored. Ryan, finally fed up, made his way to the door. So intent was he on reaching his destination that he bumped into a woman while passing. He turned to give an apology but stopped, dumbstruck.  
  
Standing before him was the most beautiful creature he had seen in his life. Clear olive skin, with dark eyes and hair, she stared back at him. All thoughts of Rosa were forgotten, erased completely from his memory as he picked up her hand and brushed a kiss over it. "Excuse me, ma'am," he said, his heart hammering in his chest.  
  
Jules felt rapture. The man standing before her seemed vaguely familiar, but she knew she had not seen him before. It felt as if she knew him, almost as if she had met him in a previous life. "No n-no problem," she muttered, looking into the depths of his eyes. She felt as if she was drowning in a deep blue sea of, well, feeling. Never before had she felt this way. She felt as if she was floating on golden clouds.  
  
"To what do I owe this acquaintance?" he asked, not letting go of her hand. He, too, felt as if he knew this majestic creature standing in front of him. He knew at once he was in love. The kind of love he felt for Rosa was back, but more potent. He knew that this was the woman he wanted to spend his life with. He couldn't explain why; he just knew. He slowly bent his head and put his lips to hers.  
  
A burst of light spread before Jules' eyes. The warm lips on hers brought a sensation like no other. She fell into the kiss, her mind going beyond itself. As he pulled away, she felt a strong disappointment. He then turned and ran from the room, out the front door, and out of her life as quickly as he had come.  
  
No!, Jules thought. Well, I know I will see him again. I can feel it.  
  
"Maria!" she said, rather loudly, to her nurse. "Who was that man?"  
  
"The one ye was kissing? Nay, don't worry, I won't tell yer ma. That was Ryan Williams, son of your father's greatest foe."  
  
Jules felt hot tears spring to her eyes. She turned and ran from the room.  
  
  
  
Ryan, Benjamin, and Michael all piled in the car. "Who was that dressed as the angel?" Ryan asked demurely.  
  
"Ah, daughter of Vespucci, Jules, the wench!" Benjamin replied. "Heard quite a many things 'bout her."  
  
Ryan resisted the urge to punch Benjamin's smiling face as he pulled the car over. "You guys go ahead. I think I'm going to walk." He opened the door and stepped outside. The calls of his friends fell on deaf ears as he ran into the shady shelter of the forest, determined to sneak back on Vespucci grounds.  
  
  
  
"Ryan! Ryan, dammit, where are you?" Michael felt slight irritation at his friend. So lovesick was he, and Michael wished he would just get over it. The man was as stubborn as a mule, but nevertheless, Michael loved him. "He's probably wondering around, oblivious to his surroundings. Let's go, Ben, the dolt can find his own way home."  
  
Michael and Benjamin started back towards the car, laughing and joking. Both wished their friend Ryan would just return to Earth.  
  
  
  
Ryan jumped the fence and waited for an alarm to ring. No ring came, however, and he snuck through a small garden. He glanced quickly around him as light flooded the garden, and ran to the shelter of the fragrant bushes.  
  
He looked up to the source of light, and saw a figure silhouetted behind a sheer oatmeal-colored curtain. The curtain parted, and a person emerged. Ryan gasped as Jules stepped into the light. The warm feeling felt earlier spread through him again. Should I say something? he thought. She probably knows I'm a Williams, he thought bitterly.  
  
"God, life sucks!" Jules said to no one in particular.  
  
Her voice! Ryan thought. Sweeter than any I've heard before. It was an ironic thought, considering her tone was harsh, but angry, and wistful at the same time.  
  
"Why would it have to be Ryan? Anyone but Ryan. I wish names didn't mean a thing. Then we could be together." Jules paused and thought for a moment. She leaned her arms against the banister. "I suppose there's nothing to a name, after all. It's not like it's a major body part or something!"  
  
"Jules!" her name escaped from Ryan's throat.  
  
"Who's put there?" Jules said, drawing back.  
  
"I'm.I'm Ryan. I just had to see you." Ryan approached the balcony, the screen of darkness that had covered him so well removed.  
  
"Geez.do you know what will happen to you if my father's goons find you? You're dealing with the mob here, surely you must know that!"  
  
"Yes, I know. But I wanted to tell you. I saw you tonight and.well, I felt as if I knew you. We're meant to be together, I know it! I.love you." Ryan's words fell out in a rush. He climbed the balcony and went to face Jules. He took her arm and turned her towards him. "Tell me you fell the same way, too," he said.  
  
"I can't deny my feelings for you, but, well, it's just impossible." Jules wanted to deny those feelings, to bury them down inside where they would never emerge from again.  
  
"Do you trust me?" Ryan put his lips to hers. "Do you? I want to marry you. If your answer is yes, send word to me tomorrow. I will be waiting." At this, Ryan leapt from the balcony and ran through the gardens. Jules again collapsed into tears. 


End file.
